ILLINOIS POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD

August

18,

1982

VILLAGE

OF GERMAN

VALLEY,

)

)

Petitioner,

v.

)

PCB 82—75

ILLINOIS ENVIRONMENTAL

)

PROTECTION AGENCY,

)

Respondent.

OPINION AND ORDER OF THE BOARD

(by J.D. Dumelle):

This matter comes before the Board upon a petition for

variance filed by the Village of German Valley (Village)

on

June

11, 1982.

That petition requested variance from Section

312.101

(35

Ill. Mm.

Code,

Subtitle

C,

Ch.

I:

old Rule 1201

of Chapter

3:

Water Pollution) for a period of three years to

allow a Class

3

certified operator to operate the Village’s

wastewater treatment plant

(WWTP) which requires a Class

2

operator.

Hearing was properl~’waived and none was held.

The

Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (Agency)

filed a

recommendation on July 14,

1982 that the variance be granted

for a period of one year,

subject to certain conditions.

The Village owns and operates

a WWTP which serves approxi-

mately 320 people and consists of a lift station, bar screen,

comminuter, contact stabilization activated sludge, disinfection,

polishing pond and sludge

lagoon.

Design average flow is 0.04

MGD.

Discharge is to the Northeast Branch of Mud Creek,

a

tributary of Leaf Creek and the Rock River, pursuant to NPDES

Permit No.

1L0024821.

Mr.

Erwin D.

Toerber, a Certified Class

1 Operator, had

been contracted for several years to serve as the certified

operator of the

WWTP.

However, he terminated his employment on

June

30, 1982.

Mr. Brian Ross was hired to work at the WWTP

in December, 1979 under the supervision of Mr. Stanley Strauss.

Upon the death of Mr. Strauss

in the spring of 1981,

Mr.

Ross

took over as operator under the supervision of Mr.

Toerber.

This variance is requested to allow Mr.

Ross to continue operating

the WWTP without Mr. Toerber’s supervision until such time as he

can obtain Class

2 certification.

Mr. Ross had no experience in WWTP operation prior to being

hired by the Village.

As of June,

1982

he needed

32

months

additional experience to qualify for the Class

2

examination.

Therefore,

a variance of nearly

3

years is required for him to

become properly certified.

47-537

---

—2—

The Village alleges, and

the

Agency agrees, that the cost

of compliance would be approximately $240/month with no offsetting

environmental benefit,

Mr. Ross appears to be a competent operator

and,

in fact, Agency grab samples show a definite improvement

in effluent quality since he took over operation of the WWTP.

Therefore, the Board concludes that denial of the requested

variance would impose an arbitrary or unreasonable hardship and

that variance should be granted.

However, the Board will not

grant variance for the full three year term, hut rather will

follow the Agency’s recommendation that variance be granted for

one ~‘ear. Mr. Ross is considerably short on experience and

it

remains

to be seen how capably he can operate the WWTP without

supervision.

By granting a one year variance,

the Village will

have to come before the Board again with information showing

the WWTP’s operating record under Mr. Ross and the Board will

be in a better position to determine whether he should be allowed

to continue operating the

WWTP

until

he becomes properly certi-

fied.

Finally,

an April

14,

1982 Agency inspection of the WWTP

revealed certain compliance,

operation and maintenance defi—

ciencies.

These deficiencies include improper procedures for

BOD analysis

(failure to dechlorinate

or seed the effluent sample),

the use of grab samples rather than composite samples,

the failure

to record operating data, periodic violations of BOD and TSS

limitations

(particularly during winter freeze—ups), and improper

maintenance of lagoon berrns.

While Mr.

Ross

is responsible for

most of these deficiencies, they apparently pre-date his super-

vision and,

apparently, have been

largely corrected.

However,

the Board will incorporate the requirements that these deficiencies

be corrected and remain so as a condition of variance.

This Opinion constitutes the Board’s findings of fact and

conclusions of law in this matter.

ORDER

The Village of German Valley is hereby granted variance

from Section 312,101 of the Illinois Administrative Code,

Title

35,

Subtitle

C, Chapter

1

(Water Pollution)

until August 19,

1983 or until

Mr. Brian Ross terminates his employment with the

Village’s WWTP,

whichever occurs

first,

subject to the following

conditions:

1.

The Village shall operate its WWTP under the best prac-

ticable operation and maintenance practices,

including, but not

limited to, proper testing procedures for BOD, minimization of

winter freeze—up, recording facility operating data, performing

composite sampling, and maintaining lagoon berms; and

47-538

---

—3—

2.

Within forty—five days of the date of this Order, the

Village shall execute and forward to the Illinois Environmental

Protection Agency, Air Pollution Control Division,

2200 Churchill

Road, Springfield,

Illinois 62706,

a Certificate of Acceptance

and Agreement to be bound to all terms and conditions of this

variance.

This forty-five day period shall be held in abeyance

for any period this matter is being appealed.

The form of the

certificate

shall be as follows:

CERTIFICATE

I,

(We),

having read

the Order of the Illinois Pollution Control Board in PCB 82—75,

dated________

__________________,

understand and accept the said

conditions thereto binding and enforceable.

Petitioner

By:

Authorized Agent

Title

Date

IT IS SO ORDERED.

I,

Christan L. Moffett, Clerk of the Illinois Pollution

Control Board, hereby certify that the above Opinion and

Order were adopted on the

i.~’_dayof

~/

,

1982

by a vote of

______________.

_________

/

.i/J.~/~

~

Christan

L. Moffett, Clerk

Illinois Pollution Control

Board